International Democracy

The Labour Party wants to build a better organised world where each individual is guaranteed basic human rights and countries co-operate to solve common problems.
A global democratic legal system should be established in which all countries, whether they are large or small, rich or poor, have common rights and obligations to each other. The alternative is an international society characterised by chaos or the rule of the mighty. Norway should work actively to develop a network of binding forms of co-operation both in our part of the world and in broad international contexts.

Nordic Co-operation
The multi-faceted cultural and political collaboration among the Nordic countries should be strengthened and expanded in many areas. We want to further develop the Nordic energy market with a joint implementation of international environmental agreements, support for renewable energy sources and a more environment-friendly energy consumption. The Nordic countries can be tied together more closely by the establishment of joint electronic networks, among other things between universities, colleges and libraries. Our Nordic basis is an important point of departure for increased influence in international co-operation. Now that Finland, Sweden and Denmark are all members of the EU, matters associated with European co-operation have assumed a more prominent place in Nordic contacts. In this sense the co-operation among the Nordic countries is also an important channel for indirect Norwegian influence on the decision-making processes in Europe. It is important that shared Nordic values be utilised in international co-operation and that the interaction among the Nordic countries can also be aimed at achieving this end.

Co-operation in The Vicinity of The Nordic Countries
In the Barents region and the Baltic Sea region there are great opportunities for development, which have long been prevented by the Cold War division of Europe into East and West. Together with the other Nordic and European countries, Norway should continue to expand co-operation with these nearby regions to the East. We can use the Barents co-operation to create networks and encourage broader contact among the Nordic countries and the Russian society in the far North. This co-operation will include measures to counteract and reduce military tensions, reduce and remove threats to the environment, implement economic and cultural policy measures, promote trade and economic connections, and develop conditions that will promote co-operation among the indigenous population in the region and enable them to maintain their culture. Norway has a fundamental interest in drawing Russia into as extensive, binding and multi-faceted an interaction as possible. At stake are our security and peace in the broadest sense of the word. Norway's participation in the new Baltic co-operation should also be seen from this perspective.

Development of Pan-European Co-operation
The Labour Party's fundamental objective in its European policy is to establish co-operative programmes that include all European countries. Now that the boundaries between the old alliances are gone, there are greater opportunities for a broad, binding co-operation that can create a basis for lasting peace, a better environment and full employment. A number of Eastern European countries are now applying for membership in the European Union and the western military collaboration. We want the EU and NATO to evolve into pan-European co-operative bodies, where all European countries are either members or have links through close co-operative arrangements. The network of structures, such as the EU, NATO, the Council of Europe, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and NATO's ÇPartnership for PeaceÈ programme (PfP) help to bind the countries more closely together so that Europe's future can be developed in a climate of co-operation instead of rivalry and confrontation.

Norway's Place in the European Co-operation
In the referendum of 1994 the Norwegian people decided that Norway should not be a member of the European Union (EU). The people's decision forms the basis for the Labour Party's policy on Europe in the next session of the Storting (the Norwegian parliament). Norway's economic and trade relations with the EU are based on the EEA agreement. A new assessment of the question of EU membership will only be natural if significant changes occur in the European co-operation. Within the framework of our current ties to the European Union, it is necessary to look after Norway's interests and needs. Therefore, it is desirable to have a close co-operation with the EU in a number of areas. We would especially like Norway to have as close ties as possible to the EU's international activities, i.e. foreign and security policy matters and the justice sector, including police and customs matters. This does not mean that the possibilities of an independent refugee and visa policy and for border controls with respect to drug smuggling are limited. Through our Nordic contacts, co-operation among social democratic parties, and the dialogue with the EU and its member countries, we shall try to influence the European Union's policies. It is in Norway's interest that the European co-operation functions well and that it is focused on solving problems and tasks that the countries in Europe have in common. Norway must make special efforts to ensure that full employment becomes the most important goal for the countries of Europe. Through collaboration among political parties and trade union movements we want to work for national and European guidelines that can promote employment in a way that is socially and environmentally sustainable. Through its own activities and in co-operation with the labour movement in the Nordic countries and in Europe, the Norwegian Labour Party wants to develop political and professional co-operation with Eastern European countries with the aim of strengthening their democratic foundations and respect for human rights.

Co-operation with Russia
Security and stability cannot be achieved in our part of the world unless there is good co-operation with Russia. It is not in our interests if our neighbour becomes isolated and turns away from Europe. Especially for Norway, the only NATO country that borders on Russia, it is important to help ensure that the country's relations with Europe and the western military alliance are characterised by trust and co-operation rather than conflict and rearmament. We must develop security, environmental safety and sustainable development together with Russia. Therefore, the country's participation in NATO's ÇPartnership for PeaceÈ programme is especially important from the Norwegian point of view. The measures that build trust should be developed further, in order to further reduce the perceived threats on both sides. Norway should actively go in for good two-way relations and strengthen the practical co-operation on trade, shipping, environmental measures and the management of natural resources. The Action Programme for Eastern Europe, which is especially intended for Northwest Russia, the Baltic States and Poland, should be further developed with emphasis on democracy-promoting measures, economic co-operation and efforts to improve the environment.

The Organised Global Co-operation
The United Nations is the most important instrument for global co-operation. We think there is a need to reform the co-operation in the UN so that the organisation can be made more efficient and more capable of meeting the important challenges of our times. The UN must be given a stronger role in the efforts to prevent war and promote peace., to protect the global environment, to equalise economic disparities and to promote human rights. The goal is that the nations of the world, acting through the UN, should have opportunities to pass binding joint resolutions on fundamental problems that the people of the world can only solve together. If the organisation is going to strengthen its position, its decision-making bodies must be given a composition that reflects that of today's world. Many countries ought to be given a permanent seat on the Security Council, including representatives for the developing countries, so that it will become more democratic and can achieve more legitimacy in the world at large. Evaluations of the results and resource consumption of all of the UN's programmes and organisations should be conducted at regular intervals. Norway can expedite this process by allocating its support to the UN measures that demonstrate a capability and willingness to solve problems efficiently and reduce red tape.

The UN as a Peacemaker
The end of the Cold War gave the UN new opportunities to play the active, unifying role in the service of peace that was originally intended for the organisation. The extent of the UN's peace-keeping operations has increased considerably, and operations to establish peace have also been conducted. This is a necessary development, but it must be balanced so that the UN remains an impartial joint instrument for peace. We support the efforts to enable the United Nations to react quickly when crises and war threaten. The organisation must be given a mandate to launch these operations on behalf of the global community. It will make them more capable of effectively intervening to prevent war and re-establish peace in a world where aggressive nationalism and ethnic, social and religious disputes can rapidly lead to violent conflicts.

Defence of Human Rights
Every person has fundamental, universal human rights regardless of which country he or she lives in. Unfortunately, these are flagrantly violated in many countries. We are all responsible for defending human rights regardless of where they are violated. They should be developed into a set of binding global ethical rules as a broad-based UN commission has recommended. The violation of human rights concerns women in particular in large parts of the world. Norway should put particular emphasis on opposing discrimination against women in all areas. Religion cannot be used as an excuse for violating human rights. The Labour Party wants Norway to raise human rights issues in all of its contacts with the authorities of countries where they are being violated. In cases where particularly serious violations of human rights occur, Norway must work for effective international sanctions. In some situations direct intervention by the UN on behalf of the global community may be necessary in order to prevent serious injustice against certain groups of people. These measures must have broad international support in order to be implemented, and have sufficient effect. In the efforts against child labour and for trade union rights, we want to put great emphasis on carrying on a good international dialogue with the parties in working life through the International Labour Organisation and the International Trade Organisation. Norway has a special responsibility to call attention to violations of human rights in countries with which we are allied.
The connection between trade and human rights is an extremely complicated field, where there are no clear and easy solutions. Trade can help promote greater openness, and this kind of openness in turn can facilitate the work for increased respect for human rights. There will be cases, however, where the regime is so repressive that a dialogue will serve no purpose. In such cases Norway should work to increase international pressure on the regime and assess the possibility of imposing sanctions. A careful appraisal of the situation must be made in each case. The attitudes of the opposition in the country in question to trade and foreign investments should weigh heavily in these considerations.

Global Economic Ground Rules
We live in a globalised economy with weak mechanisms for international control. Thus, the Labour Party supports a strong International Trade Organisation with binding co-operation on trade policy matters in a broad sense. We support the proposal for an economic security council that can draw up the main guidelines for the global economy and consider it in the context of the environment, employment, the war on poverty and respect for basic human rights. The economic security council must co-ordinate the objectives of the World Bank Group's funds and banks with the International Trade Organisation and ensure that political control and leadership are established in global economic matters. In order to counteract ruinous currency speculation, we are in favour of conducting an international study that looks into the question of taxation of currency transactions. A tax of this kind must be devised in such a way that it counteracts short-term, destabilising capital flows. The tax ought to have very little damaging effect on international trade and long-term investments. The revenues from any tax that is imposed on currency transactions can help finance global co-operation, among other things through the UN system.

Peace and Security

The Labour Party wants to develop increased regional and global security by safeguarding the existing disarmament agreements and supporting new models of co-operation based on an expanded concept of security.
At the same time that the opportunities for developing peaceful relations have increased, major international challenges have yet to be resolved, such as bans on anti-personnel mines, agreements on the storage of nuclear waste and a total, universal ban on the testing of nuclear weapons. As global agreements and regional security policy networks are developed, it ought to be possible to mutually reduce each country's total consumption of resources for weapons and rearmament.

Pan-European Security and Co-operation
The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is an important element in the pan-European co-operation on security matters. The political consultations within OSCE cover all matters of importance for security in our part of the world. We want to help develop a comprehensive pan-European security model for the 21st century based on an expanded concept of security. This ought to include maters relating to the development of economic and social security, the efforts to prevent ethnic conflicts and contain aggressive nationalism, efforts promoting human rights and the evolution of democracy, prevention of environmental disasters, and systems to provide early warnings of potential conflicts. The aim will be to make Europe an area where mutual security, stability and co-operation prevail and where no country should have the right to enhance its own security at the expense of other member nations. This new security model should not replace the established security infrastructures, but should be based on existing organisations and institutions.

NATO - The Cornerstone of Security Policy
Membership in NATO should continue to be the cornerstone of the efforts to ensure Norway's security. After the Cold War came to an end, NATO has demonstrated that the organisation is capable of adapting to the new situation. The western defence alliance continues to have an important role to play because it has demonstrated the ability to undertake new tasks and because it is still necessary to guarantee the security of its member nations. The alliance should not threaten anyone, but should make it clear that the members will stand together if freedom and democracy are attacked. The threats against European security and stability in this new age come primarily from aggressive nationalism and ethnic conflicts. It is important that NATO also be involved in containing conflicts of this sort. A number of eastern European countries want to become members of the NATO alliance. These countries must be allowed to freely choose the foundation of which to base their security policy, just as Norway and other Western European countries were able to do. Our goal is to help these new democracies gain access to the things we have achieved: security, stability, democracy and welfare. The objective of an expansion of NATO should be to increase the security of everyone in Europe. A NATO expansion should not be aimed at Russia, but should be carried out while respecting that country's national interests. There should not be sharp distinctions between those outside of the alliance and those who belong to it. An expansion should occur simultaneously with NATO's attempts to develop good, trustworthy co-operative arrangements with the remaining European countries. The western military alliance has therefore invited Russia, the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, Finland and Sweden to enter into closer co-operation on defence and security policy through agreements relating to NATO's ÇPartnership for PeaceÈ programme. These agreements should serve as preparatory measures for countries that want membership in NATO, and as a permanent arrangement for countries that do not regard NATO membership as relevant to their interests. It is up to each individual partner nation to determine the scope and intensity of their co-operation, which includes everything from dialogue and consultations to joint staff and field exercises. The Partnership for Peace has already built bridges between nations that formerly opposed each other, and it has reduced the differences between countries that are members of NATO and those that are outside of the alliance. This arrangement should be strengthened and further developed, so that all European nations can find their place in a broad defence policy network.

Conventional Disarmament
The CFE agreement (Conventional Forces Europe) relating to a ceiling for conventional arms is an important part of OSCE's and Europe's new security architecture. It leads to a balance of power at a lower level of armament and facilitates a mutual reduction in the capability of launching surprise attacks and offensive military operations. Equally important are the openness, information, inspections and confidence-building measures that are a part of the agreement. Based on these positive experiences, OSCE's Forum for Security Co-operation is supposed to develop a framework for future arms control. This will provide a basis for a new generation of disarmament agreements, which must become an important part of the security model for the 21st century. The co-operation in OSCE is defined as a regional arrangement under the UN treaty. It is important that the UN take the initiative to establish similar arrangements in the remaining parts of the world. At a global level a ban must be implemented on the use, production, storage and sale of anti-personnel mines, which inflict great risk and suffering on civil populations even after a war is over. The agreement on a total ban on chemical weapons must be followed up with measures against countries that do not ratify it, so that the ban will be effective. The UN Register of Conventional Arms should be strengthened by requiring all countries to report the production and sale of weapons. Norway's own export of weapons should continue to be based on the principle that we do not sell weapons or ammunition to countries in areas where there is a war or a threat of war, or where there is a civil war.

Nuclear Disarmament
The Labour Party is in favour of a global ban on nuclear weapons. As steps toward achieving this goal a number of measures can be implemented that will reduce the danger of accidents or of these weapon systems ever being used. The agreements that have been reached concerning nuclear disarmament must be ratified and completely implemented, while further extending this disarmament to cover both strategic and tactical nuclear weapons. The inspections associated with the non-proliferation treaty, which has now been given unlimited duration, should become more extensive. New nuclear tests are not acceptable. World society must demand that all nuclear powers and countries that are on the threshold of developing nuclear weapons should commit themselves to a complete, universal nuclear test ban treaty. In many regions, the Nordic region being one of them, denuclearized zones should be established. The nuclear powers must provide clearer guarantees that they will abstain from the use of or threat of using nuclear weapons against non-nuclear powers. In addition, Norway must work to persuade the nuclear powers to give open assurance that they will not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons and that they will negotiate a treaty on the phased removal of all nuclear weapons within a specified time schedule with appurtenant provisions for effective verification and enforcement. When nuclear weapon systems are to be dismantled and removed, it is necessary to develop an international co-ordination of an environmentally justifiable handling of the radioactive materials. In Northwest Russia nuclear weapons that are to be destroyed, nuclear power plants with high risk reactors and radioactive waste from various sources constitute a serious security risk. It is Russia's own responsibility to clean this up, but the country needs international assistance and expertise in order to develop good enough storage systems. Norway must provide assistance here and take the initiative to mobilise political support and economic resources for a joint international cleanup process.

A Credible Defence
The system of alliances and the perceived threats of the Cold War era are history. Norway is not facing any clear military threat. However, the military should remain an important part of our national insurance in a world where developments are still unpredictable. Norway's self-imposed obligations relating to base policy, nuclear weapons and military exercises should be continued within the framework of the co-operation in NATO's ÇPartnership for PeaceÈ programme. We should try to reduce the society's use of resources for purely military purposes, if the international situation permits it. Regardless of what happens, the Norwegian military is currently in the midst of its biggest reorganisation since the Second World War, and in connection with this process there is a need for new investments. Room for these must be made by improving the efficiency of operations. The goal of this reorganisation is to establish a smaller, more mobile and functional military. Among other things, this modernisation should aim at allowing Norwegian forces to assume their share of the joint international responsibility for maintaining or reinstating peace in areas where there is war or the threat of war. The military should continue to be based on universal national service, and those who are performing their national service should receive an education that will enable them to make a useful contribution to the national defence if it should become necessary. The Civil Defence also needs to adapt to new requirements. A necessary condition for succeeding in this important reorganisation process is that the good co-operation between the military and the personnel organisations be continued. The alternative non-military national service should be developed in such a way that the service provided by those performing their non-military national service will be more directly relevant to the national defence.

Evening Out Disparities in The World Democracy

The Labour Party wants to help improve living conditions in the poor countries through increased assistance, debt relief and efforts to promote peace and democracy.
A significant increase is needed in the global society's efforts to help people and ethnic groups who live in poverty and are plagued by hunger and need, epidemics, natural disasters and armed conflicts. Norway should be pioneering country in the efforts to build international solidarity, and development assistance should be gradually increased in the coming years.

Solidarity Through Assistance
As a high income country, Norway has a special obligation to provide assistance for the development and improvement of living conditions in poor countries. Insofar as it is possible to utilise these funds in an effective way, Norwegian assistance should be gradually increased to one percent of the gross domestic product according to the new international principles for calculating this figure. The increased funding should be concentrated on preventing acts of war and combating conditions that damage the environment and give rise to poverty, hunger and need. The choice of partner countries should be based on whether they will conduct a development-oriented, equitable distribution policy and respect basic human rights and international conventions. This assistance should be help to self-help. It must support the recipient countries' own strategies and willingness to develop their own resources, so that a permanent dependence on assistance can be prevented. The recipient countries should be provided with expertise and resources for building a democratic system of government and a good education system and for conducting a policy that allows social development and increased creation of wealth. One of the criteria for assistance should be that the recipient country does not invest disproportionately large resources in military forces. When it comes to the use of the Norwegian development aid funds that are channelled through the UN system, Norway should emphasise the same considerations and priorities as in our bilateral aid.

Debt Relief
For a number of the poor countries foreign debt is one of their biggest burdens. A solution to the debt problem is necessary if they are to emerge from the worst poverty and start the process of development. Thus, new measures are needed to reduce their debt, and Norway must be a prime mover in this effort. These must be devised in such a way that they do not seem unfair to the countries that have managed to meet their debt obligations. The measures for the reduction or cancellation of debt should be co-ordinated with other countries and tied to obligations to bring about a better social and economic development so as to avoid a new debt crisis. If Norway were to take unilateral debt relief measures, it would primarily benefit the other creditor nations and moreover deprive Norway of opportunities to influence international bodies where debt relief is negotiated. The International Development Association and the World Bank must devise comprehensive solutions for countries that are unable to resolve their debt situation. For the poorest countries and those most deeply in debt, we want to work for as great a reduction in the debt as possible through the so-called Paris Club, which is an informal group of creditor nations in the OECD. In some cases, however, unilateral debt relief for particular countries may be evaluated. It will also be relevant to take part in international collaborations with private banks concerning the individual repurchasing of debt at a greatly reduced price, so that it can then be forgiven.

A More Equitable World Trade
Many poor countries need better access to the high-income countries' markets in order to increase their exports and their own revenues. The negotiations in the World Trade Organisation should have the objective of seeing that the poorest countries are given better access to markets in all areas where they have a chance of succeeding, such as the agriculture and textile sectors. Norway should increase its direct support of these efforts by expanding its preferential trade agreements to include some imports from these countries. Part of the assistance to industry and commerce must be used to build up trading expertise and an exporting system so that the developing countries become more capable of taking advantage of the market opportunities that are provided by the international trade regulations. This should include conditions such as product development and marketing, labelling and rules of origin, inspection of food products and veterinary rules, plus other measures that can make the products better known and more competitive and create confidence in the market. At the same time as we want to work for a more open world trade, we want to guarantee fundamental social standards for the employees through the international trade agreements. This is especially the case for child labour, which is a violation of basic human rights, and which is due to both poverty and political acceptance of these activities in certain countries. Child labour must be actively opposed through international trade policy, through political dialogue and assistance, through support to educational measures and through economic assistance to the families of the children.

Peace and Democracy
Armed conflicts and rearmament stand in the way of improving the living conditions in many poor countries. Peace treaties and national reconciliation are often a necessary condition for social and economic development. Norway has actively taken part in peace-making efforts in many war-torn areas and gained positive experiences, which indicate that this ought to be an important element in the aid effort. When peace processes and reconstruction get underway, it is very important to be able to provide development aid funds in order to support a positive development. The causes of the conflicts can best be eliminated if hunger and poverty are effectively dealt with, and social and economic living conditions are improved. At the same time, democratic processes with free elections, political parties, elected bodies, public administration and freedom of expression must be developed so that the situation can be stabilised. A number of countries and regions with which Norway co-operates, such as Guatemala, the Middle East, Africa's Horn, Cambodia, Bosnia and South Africa, are in different stages of this process. In other war-torn and conflict-ridden areas reconciliation has scarcely gotten underway, and the international community should take more responsibility for terminating the conflicts and protecting human rights. This entails that in the future we shall have to keep providing substantial amounts of development aid funds in the form of short-term and long-term aid to poor countries that are in a transition phase involving reconciliation and reconstruction.

Emergency Relief and Voluntary Organisations
In acute situations of famine and need we must be able to rapidly implement emergency relief measures. Voluntary organisations such as Norwegian Church Aid, the Norwegian Save The Children Fund, the Norwegian Red Cross and the Norwegian People's Relief Association have well-developed international networks and administrative systems that enable them to play an important role in this respect. The task of creating a more efficient contingency system should be given priority, and the Norwegian model, in which voluntary organisations play the main role in the provision of emergency relief, should be further developed. It helps bring about greater participation by and support from the population in the relief work and makes it easier to build up separate local voluntary organisations in the crisis-struck countries. The other main channel for humanitarian relief efforts is the UN system. It must develop its ability to effectively prevent emergency situations through mediation and active resolution of conflicts, flood and drought prevention, efforts to prevent desertification, measures to prevent epidemics, the safeguarding of water sources, etc. In some of the most vulnerable poor countries food production is unable to keep up with the population growth. In such cases Norway should try to influence the UN in particular to increase its efforts to prevent famine and need through its food programme and its Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO).

Women and Children
Growth and development in the poorest parts of the world can only occur if women are given democratic rights, the possibility to determine their own lives, and an opportunity to use their abilities and resources. This should be followed up directly by increasing the percentage of projects intended for women in our development assistance work. It makes sense socio-economically to invest in women's health and opportunities. The fight against assaults on and discrimination of small girls and grown women must be intensified. Rape and violence against women and children as a military strategy must be opposed by all available means. Measures are needed for greater protection of women and children in war and other situations resulting in refugees, and the use of humanitarian UN intervention and international courts must be evaluated in light of this need. About half of the UN's member countries have not fully endorsed the convention to abolish all forms of discrimination against women. Of the nearly one billion people in the developing countries who are illiterate, there are twice as many women as men. The fact that women in some countries do not have the right to own land is also a major impediment to a sustainable development. The disparity between the sexes increases the higher one rises in the education system. The action plan from the UN's 4th World Conference on Women puts great emphasis on the importance of education in improving living conditions. This task should be given high priority in all aspects of development aid work. At the same time better primary health services in the poorest countries are crucial for combating maternal mortality and deaths among small children as a result of diarrhoea and dehydration. The development of primary health services also makes it possible to spread knowledge and information about family planning and to start vaccination programmes against widespread diseases such as polio, tuberculosis and diphtheria. Norway should help improve efficiency in the work of the World Health Organisation (WHO) in these areas and improve the health-oriented efforts in our own bilateral aid programmes.

Assistance to Industry and Commerce
It will not be possible to do away with poverty and need in the developing countries unless they are able to increase their creation of wealth. This increase must be sustainable and must help reduce poverty, and it must be based on the premise that more raw materials can be processed by the poor countries themselves. In many cases this requires favourable financing and the support of public and private developers of industry and commerce. The main sources of this funding should be The International Development Association and the regional development banks for Africa, Asia and Latin America. Loans for investments in energy supply, infrastructure and other purposes that are crucial to the development of industry and commerce in low-income countries should be kept interest-free and have a long grace period. In the World Bank Group we want to support formulating the measures aimed at the recipient countries in such a way that they are not forced to make adjustments that cause detrimental social effects. Norway should meet its obligations to help replenish the World Bank Group's development funds and other measures involving multilateral assistance. We want to work for the democratisation of the World Bank so that the developing countries are ensured greater influence. At the same time support for the development of industry and commerce and job-creation should be an important aspect of our bilateral aid. This may involve necessary parallel financing of projects that receive loans from the World Bank system, or direct investment support when risk reduction is necessary in order for companies to be able to get involved. The arrangements supporting industry and commerce should be used to promote lasting co-operation among firms and the establishment of new companies that will increase the competence and competitiveness of the recipient. The direct assistance to industry and commerce should not evolve into permanent support, and should be concentrated on fields where Norway has special expertise and technology to offer.

Ensuring Results
In order to help as much as possible it is important to improve the use of resources in the development aid work. We want to put greater emphasis on critical reporting and the evaluation of the cost effectiveness of all measures. This must occur in close collaboration with the recipient countries so that their own ability to manage public resources can be improved. It will therefore be an important objective for development aid to help develop effective government administration with orderly economic management and good planning and control systems. Without these the recipient countries' ability to receive and make use of large financial contributions and transfers may prove to be extremely limited. The development aid must be organised on the basis of the recipient countries' capacity and capabilities of controlling and maintaining the measures themselves. This entails that greater demands should be made on their responsibilities as recipients and their result orientation. Breaches of agreements and delays in meeting obligations should have clear repercussions for the ongoing development aid work. However, we must also make demands on ourselves. One such demand is that Norwegian development aid projects should be framed in collaboration with local users and authorities. Norwegian development aid must take into consideration the recipient country's own culture and traditions. The underlying idea should be that development aid projects are based on local needs. Norway should also emphasise these same ideas in the part of our development aid effort that is channelled through the UN system. This should largely take the form of earmarked funding in concrete areas where Norway is willing to make a special effort.

Solidarity with The World's RefugesDemocracy

The Labour Party will work both locally and globally to give protection to people who have had to flee from their homes.
Refugees who come to Norway should receive relief and protection in keeping with the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and international
treaties. The wealthy countries must give the UN's High Commissioner for Refugees greater resources and better policy instruments in order to increase the shared responsibility for the world's refugees. Relief and preventive measures, which reach as many people as possible in the vicinity of a crisis should be stepped up.

Relief in The Vicinity of a Crisis
The global refugee problem is big and tragic and challenges the global community's solidarity and ability to act. All people who are forced to flee are our concern. It is just as important to protect them whether they come to Norway or not. When serious conflicts arise and situations involving mass flight occur, the refugees should preferably be given relief as close to their homes as justifiably possible. That will give the individual a greater chance of resuming a normal life after the crisis is over, and it will allow the relief to reach more people. Burdens and tasks in the relief work must be divided in such a way that the neighbouring countries do not have too shoulder to large a share of the responsibility and costs and thereby reduce their capacity to help. The international community should strengthen the UN's High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) when it comes to emergency preparedness, the sharing of burdens and the co-ordination of emergency relief efforts. Norway should be a pioneer among the countries supporting the High Commissioner's work and should allocate considerable funds, which make it possible to react quickly when the UNHCR sends out emergency appeals. The voluntary relief organisations play an important operational role in the High Commissioner's emergency relief strategy and should be important co-operative partners when Norway gives humanitarian aid. In many cases it may be possible to avoid emergencies and situations that force people to take flight by taking preventive measures at an early point in time. Norwegian development aid should therefore be focused more on measures that can help bring about reconciliation and prevent need and persecution.

Protection in Norway
Our refugee policy should be based on Norway's support of the UN's Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees. In keeping with the convention all applicants for political asylum who come to Norway in need of protection from persecution should receive it. They should be assured of equal and just treatment, whether they come as resettlement refugees from the UN's High Commissioner or on an individual basis. No one who in the UNHCR's assessment can be subjected to persecution in their homeland should be sent back. Norway should be prepared to take its responsibility for the reception of an increasing number of resettlement refugees on the basis of recommendations from the UN's High Commissioner concerning the international apportionment of the refugee burden. When armed conflicts and widespread violence result in mass flight in an area, those who come to Norway can be granted collective asylum; this should be decided in consultation with the High Commissioner in each particular case. We want to take a comprehensive look at practices and experiences in refugee policy in recent years. The aim of this kind of review is to see whether it can provide a basis for liberalising certain practices. In addition, Norway should go in for a survey of the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees in the UN's bodies so that the UN can become more capable of establishing uniform practices, an equitable apportionment of the burden and a clear humanitarian obligation to provide protection in all countries. The convention's status must be enhanced internationally so that more countries endorse it. In order to increase European responsibility for the world's refugees, Norway also wants to work for the establishment of a European convention on the status of refugees, which would entail greater obligations and a more equitable division of the burden. Many refugees are fleeing from terror and assaults that are not committed by the authorities in their home country, but which the authorities are either unable or unwilling to prevent. People are exposed to assaults that would have qualified them for refugee status if the authorities in their country had been responsible, but which do not give them this status pursuant to a strict interpretation of the UN's Convention Relating to The Status of Refugees. The Labour Party wants any European convention that is devised to give refugee status to those who flee this kind of brutal, systematic infringements of their human rights. In Norway these refugees should be granted political asylum instead of residence on a humanitarian basis as they are at present.

Repatriation to the Homeland
According the UN's Universal Declaration on Human Rights the refugee's right to return to his or her homeland is recognised to just as great an extent as the right to seek asylum in another country. A return in safety and with dignity is the most desirable permanent solution in situations where people are forced to become refugees. People who are driven to flight can thereby return to a life under domestic conditions with which they are familiar. The High Commissioner must play a decisive role when it comes to recommending whether the homeland is safe enough. In order for a repatriation to be successful, have a normalising effect and result in reconciliation, it is important that there be a certain amount of preparation on the part of the UNHCR, the homeland and the country of exile. There should therefore be leeway in Norwegian development aid for increased support of the reconstruction of the developing countries to which the refugees are returning. Such support measures should primarily benefit the entire local community in the homeland and not just the individual who is returning. Individually oriented support should be limited to travel expenses and practical arrangements for the homecoming. Persons who have been granted asylum or residence in Norway on a humanitarian basis, should be allowed to retain that right for up to two years after returning to their homeland, so as to ensure that their repatriation is safe and voluntary.

Reception and Settlement
Those who seek asylum in Norway must have their application processed quickly so they don't have to wait a long time in uncertainty and avoid a lengthy stay in a government reception centre. We want to appoint an appeals board in asylum cases, which can ensure the asylum seekers a proper guarantee of due process and equal treatment and a punctual handling of their appeal. When asylum or a humanitarian residence permit has been granted, it is important to quickly enact suitable training and employment measures in the places where the refugees are settled. All municipalities should be willing to receive refugees so that the responsibility for the world's refugee problem is also shared equitably here at home. It is important to share lessons learned in local communities where this integration has been successful. We must avoid concentrating refugees in the big cities because this makes it more difficult to establish a good programme for the individual refugee. Both in government reception centres and after settlement, the measures aimed at refugees should be mainly planned from the perspective that they will eventually be repatriated to their homeland. This entails arranging matters so that former skills are maintained and new knowledge and skills that can be utilised in their homeland are provided. This does not conflict with the goal of providing education in the Norwegian language and society, which makes it possible for the refugees to make use of their former skills and acquire new ones during their stay in Norway. Children who live in the reception centre should normally go to school in the local community in keeping with their right and obligation to primary school education. Health services at the reception centre and place of settlement must be adapted to the problems with which these people may be afflicted after having been forced to take flight as refugees.

Integration of Minorities

The Labour Party wants everyone regardless of their ethnic background to have equal opportunities in all areas of the society.
Many people with minority backgrounds have knowledge and experiences that are not well enough used in Norway. This is expressed through a sizeable unemployment and little further education. The result is that ethnic origin is in the process of becoming an independent criterion for social status. Measures to ensure the use and development of each individual's knowledge and skills are crucial for creating greater social and economic equality. Refugees and others who are granted residence in Norway must be followed up rapidly after their arrival with individual skill training plans that can ensure them a place in working and community life. Some residence areas should be followed up with local community, youth and child-rearing measures. Integration requires that mutual tolerance, openness and respect between minorities and the majority be strengthened in Norway.

Qualification for Work
Training and follow-up aimed at providing refugees with work is completely crucial for ensuring integration. We want refugees and others who have been given residence in Norway to have their qualifications reviewed and converted to Norwegian standards very soon after their arrival. Thereafter, a plan for further education and skill training must be prepared for each individual. To intensify and ensure the integration process, the Labour Party wants training wants training in Norwegian to be obligatory for all refugees and immigrants. This language training should be adapted to the individual and take aim at achieving a specified measurable level of proficiency. The training programme must be quantitatively expanded and qualitatively improved in accordance with this objective. A certificate should be issued to those who complete this training. Individual skill training plans should also be prepared for those who have already lived in the country for a while, but who lack a survey of their expertise and have received no offers of education and work. Those who cannot read and write should have the right to be taught these skills. Those who have not completed a primary school education should be given an opportunity to do so in an adult education programme. Effective use of experience and knowledge that the individual already possesses requires that the arrangements for the approval of foreign education be improved. The responsibility for following up the individual with the preparation and implementation of plans should be delegated to the individual municipality. This requires a close co-operation among various government services. Responsibility for initiatives, co-ordination and implementation should be located in one place. The government should make it economically possible for the municipalities to implement these measures. Some form of grant or reward should be tied to the individual's completion of the qualification plans.

A Place in Working Life
In many situations job seekers who belong to a minority have greater problems in the labour market than others. Those who have the biggest problems finding a job should be given a special follow-up. One possibility may be to develop programmes establishing special places for undergoing training and acquiring practical experience in working life. Goal-oriented information work targeted at employers and employees can also have a positive effect. The employers' and trade union organisations (hereafter referred to as the social partners) have a special responsibility for providing information and establishing communication. They should receive support for these measures. Knowledge about and origins in minorities must be upgraded through the hiring of personnel with this expertise in kindergartens, schools, the national health and social welfare services, the labour market administration and the police. Educational programmes in these areas, including post-school training, should also take this factor into consideration. Public-sector services and activities have a special responsibility in their areas to recruit qualified refugees and immigrants into working life.

Housing and Local Community Measures
Especially in Oslo there is a tendency for people with a minority background to settle in enclaves in certain urban neighbourhoods. The positive aspect of this concentration is that a strong fellowship develops that takes care of people's traditions and distinctive cultural traits. The negative aspect is that it hinders regular contact between minorities and the majority population, thereby making integration more difficult. We think it should be a goal to establish neighbourhoods in which a variety of the population is represented. The point of departure, however, should be a free right for everyone to establish themselves and choose their housing wherever they like. Through policy instruments such as urban renewal, environmental measures and favourable housing loans, we want to work for good residential communities that are attractive to everyone. We would like to provide certain areas on the east side of Oslo with government support. These measures must cover conditions that affect the environment, housing, culture and child-rearing. Government subsidy programmes should be initiated for the development of practical co-operative arrangements among local minority communities, established community organisations and local public bodies. Housing co-operatives and other organisations can play an important role in these situations. The goal should be to strengthen the local communities and prevent conflicts.

Child-rearing
Children of parents with a foreign mother tongue have a need for contact with children who speak Norwegian, starting already at kindergarten age. A sufficient construction of kindergartens at a price that people can afford is an important means of achieving integration. In addition, programmes should be developed for part-time kindergarten places and open kindergartens where the parents are allowed to be present. Children whose parents have a foreign language as their mother tongue should have their knowledge of Norwegian tested well before they reach school age. When it is necessary, we would like there to be a pre-school training programme in Norwegian. There will nevertheless be some who will not be able to follow the instruction if it is only given in Norwegian in all subjects. Bilingual education should therefore be given at all levels below higher education. The aim of bilingual instruction and education in the student's mother tongue must be to make the pupils more capable of mastering Norwegian and getting the full benefit out of the instruction in other subjects. The goal is for the pupils to have a good knowledge of Norwegian after completing their schooling and to also have benefited from the rest of their education. This requires instruction adapted to the levels of their previous education Norwegian skills and regular evaluations of the pupils. The education programmes for bilingual teachers and kindergarten assistants must be improved in order to meet this need. We want to increase the government allocations to cover the extra costs associated with kindergarten and primary school programmes in areas with big concentrations of children from minority backgrounds. This requires that the municipal allocations be maintained at their current level at the very least.

Women
Women with a background in certain minorities may find themselves in an especially difficult position. Some of them live almost completely isolated with insufficient knowledge of the Norwegian language and society. This kind of situation is not consistent with our goal of equal status, and it creates problems in relation to the children. Women in this kind of situation should be systematically followed up with Norwegian instruction and knowledge about health and social conditions. The maternal and child health centres can play a key role in this work. We want them to be made more capable of providing more and better information adapted to the needs of the individual and to give instruction in health and social welfare matters and in Norwegian social conditions. We particularly want to emphasise how important it is that women be given the right and opportunity to undergo training in Norwegian and skill training for a job. They must be given offers of expanded child care in connection with this training. In this way each individual woman can be given increased freedom, an opportunity to take part in and become familiar with Norwegian social life, and a greater chance of following their children's upbringing. An improvement in women's situation will have direct influence on the children's circumstances. We want women from minority origins to become more visible and be given a greater opportunity to take part in democratic bodies. At present our existing fora are unable to accomplish this aim. We therefore think that a special council should be established for women of minority origin. This may be an important contribution to an increased dialogue, greater knowledge and better opportunities for integration.

Respect and Tolerance in a Diverse Society
Immigrants and refugees who have come to the country in recent decades constitute minorities in Norway. They are individuals with very different backgrounds and lives. They have a right to be treated and respected as equals. We live in a multi-cultural society. This requires mutual tolerance and respect, but openness and tolerance do not mean that we should avoid taking a standpoint on matters that concern our basic values. Fundamental values such as equality, guaranteed due process of law, freedom of opinion and expression, opportunity for political participation, equal status between the sexes and children's rights have a strong place in the whole Norwegian society. Our laws are based on these values. They comprise a common basis for working together with each other, which we all must respect. Discrimination because of name, skin colour, or cultural background will not be tolerated. We would therefore like to survey the current body of laws and the way they are enforced in order to make it clear that discrimination on the basis of ethnic origin is illegal and in conflict with fundamental common values in Norwegian society. At present our knowledge about living conditions among minorities, about the relations between majority and minority populations and about the effect of public measures to promote integration is not sufficiently systematised. It is therefore necessary to strengthen and co-ordinate the research in this area and to systematise the knowledge that is already available.

Global and Local Environmental
Responsibility

The Labour Party wants to work for binding international environmental agreements and establish local and national goals and policy instruments that ensure follow-up.
We will work for an international set of agreements based on cost effectiveness, common implementation and a just sharing of burdens. The practical actions that help achieve the goals for sustainable development must be put into practice nationally and locally. By making clear choices and reorganising production and consumption, Norway can gain experience and knowledge and be at the forefront of the development in environmental technology and new solutions to environmental problems.

International Environmental Agreements
Pollution respects no national boundaries. The fight against pollution must be conducted with both national measures and binding international agreements. In recent years agreement has been reached on a number of binding international agreements. Norway has followed up its international environmental obligations. Emissions of substances that destroy the ozone layer are being phased out, emissions of sulphur have been greatly reduced, and new policy instruments will be introduced so that we achieve the goal of a 76 percent reduction from 1980 to 2000. Emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX) are declining, and we are meeting our obligations to stabilise these emissions. The North Sea Declaration relating to the reduction of discharges of nutrients is being followed up, and emissions of heavy metals and environmental toxins from industry have been eliminated or greatly reduced. The Labour Party will intensify its efforts to achieve a stronger and more comprehensive set of agreements to combat the international environmental problems. Our credibility in the work for binding international environmental agreements requires that we follow these up nationally and meet our own obligations. The goal is international agreements that give the greatest possible environmental benefits. The countries should jointly decide how large the necessary reductions in emissions should be, where they can be made most cost effectively, and how the costs should be divided. The rich countries must bear the greatest costs. International environmental agreements have traditionally been based for the most part on making equivalent reductions of emissions by percent in each country. These agreements have reduced pollution and led to a cleaner environment, but they also have their evident drawbacks. They do not take into consideration that the countries are guilty of producing different amounts of pollution and that the costs associated with cleaning up this pollution can vary greatly. Therefore, the agreements should allow joint implementation where several countries work together on emission restrictions and jointly finance investments that reduce the emissions where the cost of doing so is lowest. In this way the countries will jointly achieve greater environmental benefits at lower costs. The sulphur agreements that apply to a group of countries in Europe are already based on this principle. A new generation of international environmental agreements should be based on the same principles. The most important task now, however, is to help establish an international set of treaties that can unite a broad majority of countries and be further developed over a period of time.

The Climate Challenges
Global warming as a result of the man-made greenhouse effect is one of our most serious environmental problems. The total Norwegian emissions of greenhouse gases has stabilised. CO2 emissions are increasing, while the emissions of other greenhouse gases are declining. Work is now underway to set clear goals for reducing the emissions of greenhouse gases at the international climate conference. We want Norway to work for a climate agreement with binding goals based on the principles of a fair distribution of the burden and joint implementation. Regardless of the outcome of the climate conference, it will be very demanding on Norway. This is partly because our power production is based on hydropower and partly because a considerable share of our CO2 emissions are associated with oil and natural gas production. By replacing more polluting fuels, such as coal and oil, Norwegian exports of natural gas can help reduce the CO2 emissions in other countries. Norway's challenge must be to find a way to reconcile its role as an energy-exporting nation with its role as a leading environmental nation. This is such a demanding task that it calls for broad political solutions. We must have the broadest possible support in order to revise the tax system with greater emphasis on the taxation of polluting activities. Considerable funds should be allocated to renewable energy sources, and our transport policy must be reformed. Binding agreements must be entered into with industry to achieve concrete effluent reductions within specified deadlines. Norway should be a leading nation in energy technology and renewable energy sources, and these products must be marketed internationally. In this way Norway can manage to meet its obligations regarding CO2 emissions while simultaneously helping to reduce emissions in other countries through the export of natural gas and environmental technology and through various development aid programmes.

Environmentally-oriented Assistance
The individual countries' possibilities of making conversions that ensure sustainable development are dependent on economics and access to environment-friendly technology. Norway should provide assistance and help develop technology that makes it possible to convert production in countries that would otherwise not have managed it. We have a special responsibility to the Eastern European nations. Emissions from their industries, obsolete nuclear power plants and nuclear waste in these countries are the foremost threats to the safety of the entire region. We would therefore like to see Norway increase its involvement and assistance in relation to these problems. It is especially important to devote considerable attention to the problems on the Kola peninsula. At the same time Norway should support other international environmental projects, such as work against desertification, preservation of biological diversity, and the development of renewable energy sources in the developing countries. This will occur through both a stronger environmental orientation in Norwegian bilateral development aid and through Norway's efforts in the Global Environmental Fund, which has been established to follow up the international conventions on greenhouse emissions, protection of the ozone layer and biological diversity.

Follow-up of International Agreements
International environmental agreements are followed up first and foremost through reporting on measures that have been implemented and the state of the environment in the individual countries. In addition, multilateral funds should be tied to the agreements as was done in the Montreal protocol on the reduction of emissions that threaten the ozone layer. This enables countries that have economic problems meeting their obligations to apply there for economic support. Voluntary organisations can also play an important role by affecting the opinions of governments, international institutions and co-operative bodies and encouraging them to take action. However, it has turned out that follow-ups based on these measures alone do not ensure that the agreements are implemented. The countries' deficient compliance may be related to the fact that violations of the agreements have few or no consequences for those who commit them. There is therefore a need for bodies that can legitimately follow up the agreements with injunctions and other ways of reacting. One possibility may be to establish appropriate bodies through reforms in the UN system.

Local Agenda 21
All global environmental problems are the sum of many local acts. Therefore, the municipalities have a big responsibility in the efforts to achieve a sustainable development. The UN conference on environment and development prepared a comprehensive environmental action plan for the world, which links the environment to development: Agenda 21. This plan emphasises the need for ecologically accommodations in the areas of energy, transport, agriculture and forestry. We want to follow up this plan by inducing every municipality in the country to prepare its own local Agenda 21, i.e. an action plan for local sustainable development. This plan should establish both long-term goals and concrete sub-objectives with proposals for measures that can be taken. They should include all inhabitants and groups in the municipalities, including the business community, the trade unions, and households. This entails that these same groups must be brought into a dialogue about the formulation of local Agenda 21 plans.

Discharges into the Water
Discharges of nutrients result in reduced water quality and serve to reduce the biological diversity. The follow-up of the North Sea Declaration requires that a clean-up of the sewage sector be mostly completed by the year 2,000. Norwegian discharges of phosphorous have been reduced in recent years, but reductions in discharges of nitrogen have been more modest. The biggest releases of phosphorous come from municipal sewers, which, together with agriculture, also account for the biggest releases of nitrogen. We want to reduce the effluents from agriculture by contributing to a more ecological agriculture with less use of artificial fertilisers and spray chemicals. The renovation and construction of treatment plants and sewer networks in the municipalities, among other things to facilitate greater nitrogen removal, should continue. Agreements concerning effluent reductions should be reached with companies that are responsible for large point discharges. Regulations and requirements for fish farming technology must ensure that the fish farming facilities do not overload their local environments.

Liming
Liming is the only known and available measure that can limit the acidification damage to fresh water environments. It helps save life in aqueous environments and can be carried out both in large river systems and in small lakes. In this endeavour volunteer organisations make a major, important effort. The allocations for liming should be continued.

Chemicals
Chemicals can cause foetal injuries, induce allergies, do chronic damage to the nervous system and disturb the hormonal balance of people and animals. Information about the complete composition of chemicals and about the injuries that they are known to cause is gathered and stored in The Product Register. It is impossible, however, to acquire a complete overview of the possible damaging effects of new chemicals that are being employed. Since our knowledge is limited the precautionary principle must be employed whenever possible in the introduction of new chemicals. It should not be permissible to sell dangerous substances without a special permit. All chemicals should be tested for a number of possible damaging effects before they are allowed to be used. The burden of proof that the substance can be used should lie with the producers or others who want to make use of the substance. Chemicals that are already in use, but that have not undergone similar testing, should also be submitted to controls of this sort. Goods that contain dangerous or damaging chemicals must be labelled visibly in a way that is easy for consumers to understand, so that they can make informed choices.

Acute Oil Spills and Chemical Discharges
Petroleum operations are gradually expanding northward towards more environmentally sensitive areas. This confronts the industry and the authorities with major environmental challenges. In addition, there are dangers of discharges from fishery and shipping activities. The overall strategy must be to prevent the occurrence of acute spills, while simultaneously ensuring sufficient emergency preparedness to be able to handle the pollution if a spill should nonetheless occur. The strengthening of the government emergency contingency plans for oil spills through co-operation with the military and the Directorate for Civil Defence and Emergency Training, among others, should continue. Pollution from produced water that is released during petroleum operations must be limited through the use of re-injection and discharges of chemicals from oil and natural gas operations must be limited.

A Sustainable Energy System

Utilising renewable energy sources the Labour Party wants the normal production of electricity to correspond to Norwegian electricity consumption.
Efforts will be made to ensure that hydropower, energy conservation and
alternative energy sources can make Norway independent of electricity imports from polluting sources of energy production. A co-ordinated increase in the use of CO2 taxes in the Nordic countries should be implemented so as to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases and make it more profitable to develop environment-friendly sources of energy. More use of biofuels and solar panels should be part of a comprehensive action plan for a sustainable energy system.

Energy Conservation
Norway is one of the countries in the world with the highest electricity consumption per capita, and hence reducing that consumption is a goal. It has great potential for energy conservation, and more should be done to promote energy economising (EN¯K) in households, companies and the public sector. The use of new technology and systems for measuring electricity consumption is a very important means of increasing energy conservation in all sectors. The regional EN¯K centres should be given a clearer role as active EN¯K advocates, and they should be organised independently in relation to the electricity producers so that conflicting roles may be avoided. The subsidy arrangements for energy conservation in municipal, county and state buildings and installations should be improved. Separate guidelines are needed for the consumption of energy in public buildings, and concrete measures, such as the installation of energy-efficient lighting should be promoted. A system of energy labelling for buildings, the development of environmental audits for the private and public sector, and EN¯K subsidies and other measures should induce housing co-operatives and households to invest more in energy economising. Through the regulations pertaining to its loan and subsidy arrangements, the Norwegian National Housing Bank should help make energy conserving maintenance and the use of biomass energy and other alternative energy sources in houses and homes more profitable and widespread.

Renewable Energy
Hydropower is an environment-friendly, renewable energy source. It is the most important component of a Norwegian sustainable energy system, and its value will increase if environmental taxes are imposed on CO2 emissions from other forms of energy production. We can increase our hydropower resources by building new power plants in river systems that are not included in the government's protection plan and by renovating and expanding existing hydropower plants. Government authorities should have a positive attitude to applications for concessions for projects of this sort from electricity producers. These should be included in a comprehensive plan for the development of a future sustainable energy system in Norway. This plan must also involve funding for bioenergy, which should be given especially high priority as a replacement for petroleum products in connection with heating. We want to subsidise the construction and remodelling of heating installations for the consumption of biofuels in homes, commercial buildings, public buildings and agriculture. As part of the economic development in rural areas an infrastructure should be established for the sale and distribution of biomass and equipment for putting it to use. The development of other forms of alternative energy, such as wind power, wave energy, the use of heat pumps, solar panels, and methane gas from refuse heaps should be sped up through the plan for a sustainable energy system, which will include a scheme with investment subsidies for the individual projects. Through co-ordination with local hydropower plants, wind power in particular may play an important role in our electricity supply system. The research effort concerning new, renewable energy sources must be stepped up so that Norway can make use of the great potential that we have in this area. In connection with the study of a sustainable energy system in Norway, it will therefore be evaluated whether certain sub-sections in the Energy Act should be amended.

Public Energy Management
The energy sector is of key importance for the Norwegian economy, the business community, employment and welfare. Comprehensive public management of the national energy resources is needed in order to look after the society's interests and develop a sustainable energy system. The government should own and operate the main distribution system for electrical power. Local and regional grids and power plants should also be primarily owned and operated by the public sector as they are at present. The rule pertaining to reversion rights to the state upon the expiration of a private electricity utility's concession will further strengthen public ownership over a period of time. Government authorities should regulate exchanges of power with other countries so that the domestic service reliability is maintained. We want to ensure that all customers have equal access to transmitted power and that all users pay about the same rate for these transmission services. A more consistent distinction between producers and the electrical power distribution system at all levels will contribute to this. The petroleum resources on the continental shelf should benefit the entire Norwegian society. This entails that a large share of the profits from petroleum and natural gas operations must go to the state. This should be ensured through taxation of the companies, the state's direct economic involvement and Statoil's activities. The management of the petroleum resources should be based on a long-term perspective so that we increase the national wealth and develop a sustainable economy that is not dependent on petroleum and natural gas operations.

The Use of Natural Gas
For many Central European countries, natural gas from Norway is an important fuel, which can help reduce their total emissions of greenhouse gases. In contrast to coal and many petroleum products, the combustion of natural gas does not give rise to any emissions of sulphur and particulates. The emissions of nitrogen and the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) are also significantly reduced. Natural gas has none of the safety problems that are associated with nuclear power plants. It should therefore continue to be an important feature of Norwegian energy policy to continue to go in for the export of natural gas to European countries, but arrangements should also be made for the domestic use of natural gas in industrial activities, for transport purposes and for other profitable refining and applications. In order to make the best use of our natural gas, we want to evaluate support for the transport infrastructure in the places where the natural gas will be brought ashore. It is assumed that this can be adapted to Norwegian climate policy and our environmental objectives. In the Nordic countries, however, coal-fired power is the form of electricity production that is growing most rapidly. Norwegian natural gas is an alternative to this increasing consumption of coal. Moreover, it can help reduce the Nordic countries' dependence on nuclear power. So far it has not been possible to sell natural gas through pipelines to our Nordic neighbours. Instead contracts have been signed for the sale of power from Norwegian gas-fired power plants through the electricity grid. The Labour Party can support the export of gas-fired power. This entails that we refine an important Norwegian raw material and can thereby help limit the use of coal-fired power and nuclear power. At the same time we want to work for the sale of natural gas in pipelines to our Nordic neighbours and for a joint Nordic environmental auditing tied to measures such as more co-ordinated CO2 taxes on power production.

Justifiable Petroleum Production
Although more and more countries are going actively in for reducing their emissions of greenhouse gases, it will be a long time before oil can be phased out as an important fuel on a global basis. As an oil producing country, Norway should take special responsibility to assist the development of renewable energy sources both locally and globally. The petroleum operations themselves must also be organised so that the impacts on the environment are limited. A justifiable depletion rate can mainly be ensured through the allocation of exploration permits. Strict environmental requirements should be imposed on the exploration activity. Increasing the recovery factor from existing fields by means of new technological systems is a good use of resources. Relatively speaking, investments in pollution-abatement technology will result in less pollution and emissions from the operation of the oil and natural gas platforms. The emergency preparedness against oil spills should be kept at a high level along the entire coast. Funds should be allocated each year to practice continuous clean-up of the sea floor. Oil platforms and other installations that are retired from use, should be handled on the basis of environmental considerations. Solutions must be sought that lead to more recycling and reuse and provide opportunities for developing new Norwegian industries and workplaces within this field.

Joint Nordic Implementation
The Nordic countries should devise a joint strategy for a transition to renewable energy sources and the implementation of the objectives relating to emissions of greenhouse gases. To further develop the Nordic power market, the introduction of a joint Nordic environmental audit will be an important instrument for steering the development. The goal is an optimal utilisation of hydropower and other renewable energy sources in combination with as little thermal power as possible. A joint Nordic market for electricity must be further developed with rules for how Nordic buyer and seller nations should enter emissions associated with power production into their greenhouse gas audit. Joint research and development measures should be implemented in order to put alternative renewable sources of energy to use and make them cost-effective and more available. Their profitability will improve if a co-ordinated increase in the use of CO2 taxes on power production from fossil fuels is introduced among the Nordic countries. This kind of Nordic co-operation will also help strengthen the government control of the power / energy sector and ensure a stable electricity supply. If we succeed in a joint implementation in our own region, the Nordic countries can play a more important role internationally as advocates of renewable energy sources and co-ordinated environmental taxes under the direction of the UN and the EU.

A Greener Transport Sector

The Labour Party wants to practice a transport policy that promotes a distribution of wealth, a better environment, accessibility and greater generation of wealth in business and industry.
Investments in highways, public transport, aviation and harbours must be
co-ordinated and assigned relative priorities. It should be kept in mind that the traffic and environmental problems in urban and rural regions are different. Transport investments should be shifted to a greater extent from highways to public transport and railroad construction should be given priority in urban areas where trains can serve as an alternative to cars. Public transport should be developed in cities and suburbs and should be available to an appropriate extent in rural regions as well. Measures that can reduce automobile use should mainly be implemented where buses or rails are a realistic alternative. Freight transport over long distances should be transferred as much as possible from highways to ships and railroads. One of the goals of the reforming of the transport policy is to reduce CO2 emissions.

Comprehensive Planning and Selection of Priorities
Better accessibility and opportunities to travel are a welfare benefit that should be divided as fairly as possible. Good transport and communications systems are a necessary condition for an increased creation of wealth, and hence a reinforced pattern of settlement in rural areas, and for building smooth-running cities and local communities. At the same time developments in this sector often have a major impact on the natural environment. Transport is a significant source of local air pollution problems and accounts for a large share of the greenhouse gas emissions. The way in which the transport and communications sector is organised has significant effects on both the environment and the distribution of wealth. In order to be able to weigh various considerations against each other, we shall need comprehensive studies of, planning for, and investments in the transport sector. The plans for the construction of highways, public transport, aviation and harbours should be co-ordinated. Projects in the various areas should be weighed against each other and given priority on the basis of concern for the environment and the distribution of wealth. More effective measures and decision-making processes to achieve this end must be developed and put to use.

Land Use Planning
Land use planning should help ensure good and safe local communities and reduce energy consumption, transport needs and the loss of valuable forests and fields to development. In these planning processes the accessibility of various modes of transport must be assessed, together with the location of shopping centres, residence areas, industries, public buildings and sports facilities to which a large amount of traffic is expected. Concern about preserving biological diversity and cultural relics must be given priority. The environmental costs should weigh just as heavily as economic considerations when decisions to locate and construct various projects are to be made.

Limits on Emissions
Emissions and noise from the transport sector are the foremost source of pollution in many cities and urban areas. In some places these emissions have a major negative impact on people's health and well-being. By establishing permanent measuring stations for air and noise pollution in areas with large negative transport impacts, it is possible to attract more attention to this pollution. The information from these measuring stations should be followed up with measures that can reduce the environmental impacts if noise and air pollution exceed the limits that health and the quality of life permit. The Pollution Protection Act must be applied to the transport sector with environmental requirements that are at least as strict as the EU's standards.

Less Investment in Highways, More in Rails
In the coming years we want to transfer some of our transport investments from highways to rails. The railroads should take over a substantial amount of both the passenger and freight traffic in certain parts of Norway. The investments in railroads must aim at increasing safety, punctuality and capacity while reducing travel time. Especially in densely populated areas the railroad has the potential to become an environment-friendly alternative. We want to invest most in local traffic around the major cities and in the InterCity traffic. In addition, we want to introduce tilting trains on the remote railway stretches with the heaviest traffic, which may prove to be a better alternative than planes and cars. The long distance transport of freight should be transferred as much as possible from highways to rails. The railroad's capacity for activities of this sort can be expanded by constructing new terminals and sidings. The highway investments should mainly go to the upgrading and maintenance of the already existing highway network. The construction of the network of trunk roads will continue, and in some parts of the country the national highway network must also be expanded. The development of county highways will also be supported when it will help strengthen the local economy or maintain the pattern of settlement. We want to give priority to highway investments that help solve environmental, health and safety problems.

Public Transportation - An Alternative to Cars
Public transportation should be developed into a realistic alternative to the car in cities and suburbs, so that the growth in automobile traffic in these areas can level off. In order to achieve this aim, the accessibility of public transportation must increase, and its availability, frequency and regularity must improve. This will require efficiency improvements and a better co-ordination of public transportation. Among other things, the Directorate of Public Roads should be given increased responsibility for achieving this goal. The price that the individual pays for the use of public transportation must be low enough to render these services as competitive as possible with the car in this area as well. Cities with major negative transport impacts should receive increased government support for the development and construction of public transport services and urban rail lines. At the same time road pricing, time-differentiated congestion pricing, and parking restrictions and regulations should be employed. We want to establish a road network for heavy vehicles that channels them through and around cities and urban areas.

The Automobile - Best in Rural Areas
Good transport conditions are a necessary condition for maintaining the pattern of settlement and economic activity in rural areas. The car is the best suited mode of transport in rural Norway. Therefore, further measures to reduce the use of the car should be primarily aimed at areas of the country where public transportation is a realistic alternative. Gasoline price levelling subsidies should be retained, and highway standards should be satisfactory. In addition, the rural areas should have suitable public transportation services. The public transportation services are also important for tourism and business and industry in sparsely populated regions.

More Environment-friendly Cars and Buses
Environmental and safety requirements have encouraged the production of increasingly more environment-friendly cars. We think this is a trend that should be further stimulated. Research and development on automobile engines that can make use of other types of fuel beside gasoline and diesel fuel should be intensified. We want Norway to work internationally, both with the Nordic countries and with Europe, to persuade more countries to impose requirements on the automobile industry regarding the development of more environment-friendly cars. Domestically we want to encourage increased testing of alternative fuels, such as natural gas, electricity and hydrogen. The experiments that are underway to make use of natural gas as a fuel in buses and taxis have been very promising. We want the tax system to encourage the testing of and transition to alternative fuels. In order for the price of fuel to reflect the environmental costs associated with them as much as possible, the tax on automobile diesel fuel should gradually approach the gasoline taxes. The bus companies should be compensated for the extra costs that this entails, so that public transport is not weakened by this kind of change. Use of studded tyres is a source of big local problems with dust. To reduce adverse health and environmental impacts and ensure a sizeable reduction in the use of studded tires, we want to look into the possibility of imposing taxes on the use of studded tyres, and in the biggest cities we are in favour of banning them after a suitable transition period.

Aviation
The environmental impact associated with aeroplane traffic is great both locally and globally. As in the case of other modes of transport, the environmental costs of aviation should be made public. We want to cover the environmental costs associated with aviation through increased air travel taxes on domestic flights and by increasing the taxes on aeroplane noise. The purpose of linking green taxes to aviation is primarily to reflect the environmental costs. Taxes on aviation will be less likely to lead to the choice of a different transport alternative because domestic flights are mostly utilised for business trips, for which there are no real alternatives when long distances are involved. Since air traffic is international, national measures should be supplemented with international ones. Norway should work in international fora for an international aviation gasoline tax and other environmentally-oriented taxes in the aviation sector.

Boats and Harbours
Freight transport along the coast is an environment-friendly alternative because the emissions per metric ton of transported freight are lower than for transport on land. Therefore, we want to encourage transporting a greater percentage of freight by sea. In connection with this aim it is completely necessary to consider the construction of harbours and harbour plans in connection with the development of the highway and rail systems. We want to encourage inter-municipal co-operation on harbours. The emissions from express boats and other passenger traffic are high. To reduce the emissions from ships, boats and ferry traffic, natural gas should be introduced as a fuel on ferries and express boats. Other alternative energy sources should also be looked into. At the same time we want to impose requirements on engine technology in order to increase energy efficiency.

Bicycles
Cyclists should have good traffic conditions. The government owns the network of pedestrian walkways and bicycle paths along the country's national highways. We want to develop a continuous network of public paths and trails to handle the main flow of pedestrian and bicycle traffic in the cities and larger towns. The construction of pedestrian walkways and cycle paths should also be promoted along the municipal and county highway networks. Where it is appropriate, separate lanes can be designated in streets for cyclists in cities and towns. There ought to be facilities for parking bicycles at all public transport junctions and around public buildings.

Recycling and Reuse

The Labour Party wants to reduce the amount of waste, increase recycling and reuse and ensure an environmentally justifiable final treatment of the remaining waste.
The amount of waste should be reduced by making use of information,
deposit schemes, and agreements with the business community. We want to introduce a government tax on the final treatment of waste, which can help encourage more source separation and increase the amount of recycling.
The capacity for the disposal and treatment of hazardous waste should be
further increased.

Packaging Tax and Deposit Schemes
Taxes are currently imposed on beverage containers. This environmental tax is supposed to limit the amount of waste. It is therefore linked to the expected percentage of returned containers. In addition, agreements have been entered into with business and industry relating to increased collection and recycling of plastic, metal, boxboard and brown paper packaging waste. The business community is supposed to ensure that 60-80 percent of the packaging waste from these different types of materials is gathered, recovered or utilised as a source of new energy by 1999. If it turns out that the targets of these agreements are not achieved, we want to introduce taxation and deposit schemes in other areas.

Tax on the Final Treatment of Waste
The municipalities have an obligation to devise waste treatment plans and to estimate the full extent of the costs when they specify what their inhabitants' waste treatment fees should be. Environmental costs associated with the combustion and disposal of waste are not reflected, however, in costs or fees. As a result, recycling is not profitable. In order to change this, we want to introduce a state environmental tax on the final treatment of waste. This tax should be calculated per metric ton and should vary with the type of waste and the degree of sorting. This will be an important economic incentive for both municipalities and individuals to reduce their amount of waste and increase recycling.

Good Recycling Schemes
The goal of increased recycling presumes that activities are established in Norway that can put it into practice. It makes no sense to separate waste at the source if there are no possibilities of treating it further. In co-operation with business and industry the authorities should arrange for the establishment of waste recycling activities. The government should have overall responsibility for ensuring that waste recycling facilities are available at the national level.

Hazardous Waste
More hazardous waste is gathered now than in the past. However, many thousand metric tons of hazardous waste are incorrectly disposed of each year. The gathering and storage of hazardous waste should be developed and improved. By the year 2000 practically all environmentally hazardous waste that has its origin in Norway should be recovered or treated in approved Norwegian waste disposal and destruction facilities.